Horror movies like Crimes of the Future, released on June 3rd of 2022, prove that the genre doesn’t always have to rely on masked maniacs and men in monster suits to get their supply of screams. Sometimes horrific experiments in a dark and twisted future will do perfectly. In fact, the industry of guts and gore has tons of sub-genres to play with when it comes to speculative fiction, but it’s where horror meets fantasy that things take several interesting turns.
Fantasy horror films are something of a rare breed, given that one portion of the genre tends to weigh heavier than the other. However, several terrifying tales take place in the realms of wizards, monsters, and mythical creatures.
The Witch (2015) 6.9
Based on Puritan American folktales, Robert Eggers’s debut film put a dark and sickening twist on the stereotypical witch in the woods. Anyone familiar with tales like Hansel and Gretel or Snow White will be familiar with the image of an old woman in a black cloak living somewhere in the woods waiting to eat children or fly on a broomstick.
The witch seen in this period horror movie not only casts evil spells, but turns a baby into a flying potion, bewitches a young boy, and sets her familiars on a family of exiled puritans who try to make a home outside her forest. Needless to say, this is one horror movie many fans might only want to watch once.
Constantine (2005) 7.0
It’s grand when fantasy and horror combine into one collaborative effort, but it’s another thing when comic books are thrown into the mix. Enter Constantine with its demons, angels, and chain-smoking wizards who can see into the realms between Heaven and Hell. Considered a flop-buster by some, the film truly does have something gripping and gruesome at its core.
Based on the Hellblazer comics, this Keanu-Reeves-led horror film sees the detective/exorcist duking it out with infernal forces as he tries to prevent the rise of Mamon. What transpires is a somewhat confusing yet visually interesting supernatural horror film. Plus, Peter Stormare gives an incredibly chilling performance as Lucifer himself.
The Cabin In The Woods (2011) 7.0
If there is one movie that would be considered the ultimate love letter to the horror movie genre, it’s The Cabin In The Woods by Joss Wheadon. Is centrally a horror film that connects all horror films across all genres and decades, it’s an ambitious project that has just about everything a fan of the genre could expect.
The climax of the feature involves a mass purge of nearly every single horror monster imaginable from masked psychopaths to merman and unicorns wreaking havoc on an underground facility. Simply put, it’s one of those horror movies that just has to be seen to be fully understood.
Doctor Strange And The Multiverse Of Madness (2022) 7.1
Some fans would call doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness a semi-sequel to The Evil Dead, and that wouldn’t be an unfair comparison. Just because it’s a Marvel production doesn’t mean it can’t logically be considered a fantasy horror film. After all, it’s wizards going up against demonic forces called forth by the Scarlet Witch.
To further support the film’s horror roots, the grotesque visuals, themes of demonic possession, and use of psychological horror themes saturate the production. It’s truly a film worthy of Sam Raimi’s talents.
The Shape Of Water (2017) 7.3
It isn’t every day that a monster movie wins Best Picture at the Academy Awards, but Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water brilliantly blends speculative fiction with a Hollywood-styled romance in a very unconventional way. The horror and scares are certainly present, just not always with the film’s leading creature.
An American Werewolf In London (1981) 7.5
John Landis will forever be remembered as the king of ’80s classics, but his foray into the horror genre was truly something to be admired. A near-perfect balance of horror and comedy, this creation from the mind behind the National Lampoon movies breathed new life into the classic werewolf formula.
After he and his friend are attacked by a werewolf while backpacking through England, an American tourist goes through the grueling transformation from man to beast. It Even ventures into body horror as well thanks to the incredibly impressive practical effects.
Beetlejuice (1988) 7.5
With films like Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride, and others under his belt, Tim Burton really does know how to handle both fantasy and horror. While there are certainly plenty to choose from in his filmography, one of his best is undoubtedly Beetlejuice, blending horror, comedy, and a splash of fantasy into the mix as well.
Alternate dimensions, planets of sandworms, and a song and dance number with a zombie football team are all par for the course in this creepy comedy classic featuring the Ghost with the Most. Sure, Beetlejuice is gross, lewd, crude, and has a warped sense of humor, but he certainly knows how to throw a house party.
Interview With The Vampire (1994) 7.5
It has been said that Anne Rice redefined the vampire genre and dark fantasy as a whole with her iconic Vampire Chronicles series, and that can certainly be said for the film adaptation. There’s just something about the blending of romanticized vamps that many readers have fawned over with the classic movie monsters that separate Rice’s characters from other films in the genre.
While it’s true that Louis and Lestat are suave, dashing, and debonair, they are still monsters at the end of the day, fangs and all. The events in this dark fantasy have a lot more in common with the likes of Dracula than many other semi-modern interpretations of the vampire mythos.
Faust (2000) 8.1
It might lack sound, but the original silent version of Faust is a chilling iteration of one of the oldest stories in the fantasy genre. The eerie black-and-white film techniques mixed with the german-expressionist-influenced visuals lend the film a particularly unsettling flavor. It’s truly scary for something that was made before the invention of sound.
The story of Faust is where most stories and movies about deals with the devil draw their inspiration as Dr. Faust sells his soul to Mephistopheles in exchange for youth and love. A “Faustian bargain” is often used to illustrate the price of fame at a greater cost, and it’s horror stories like this that sell the idea to a greater degree.
Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) 8.2
Once more, Guillermo del Toro proves that his skills lie in the realms of gods and monsters. Although the film leans tremendously on the fantasy side of things, there is still plenty enough horror to go around in this grown-up fairytale. It has its fairies and fauns, but it also has its cannibals and sadistic fascists.
As mystical as the scenes with the faun, the fairies, and the magical kingdom underground can be, monsters like the Pale Man and Captain Vidal are truly the stuff of nightmares. It’s this blending of elements from both genres that truly makes the film stand out in both the magical and the monstrous.
